SEC suspends trading in murky Bellevue tech firm

Federal securities regulators temporarily suspended trading in shares of Bellevue-based Imogo Mobile Technologies on Wednesday, citing concerns about whether the company has disclosed what investors need to know about its “business, revenue, and assets.”

Imogo bills itself on its website as a purveyor of cloud computing services; it has also issued releases touting its efforts to develop a Bitcoin payment platform and the upcoming release of a mobile office platform for the iPad. In a recent filing with the SEC, meanwhile, the company says it “intends to commence operations as an e-commerce retailer of overstock items through a website on the Internet.”

In a release Wednesday, the Securities and Exchange Commission referred to “questions that have been raised about the accuracy and adequacy of publicly disseminated information concerning, among other things, (Imogo’s) business, revenue, and assets.”

The suspension in trading extends through March 4, the SEC said. In practice, however, resuming trading can be a long and demanding process.

Imogo’s shares trade over the counter, outside the transparency and governance requirements put in place by stock markets such as Nasdaq or the New York Stock Exchange. The company’s shares last traded at 56 cents on Wednesday, down from a high of 77 cents on Feb. 3.

In October, Imogo disclosed it had fired its independent public accounting firm, Stan J.H. Lee, without specifying the reason. In June, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board had revoked the CPA firm owner’s registration with the organization, accusing him of improperly altering and backdating audit documents.

Lee didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Shortly after the October disclosure, the SEC asked Imogo to amend its filing in order to mention the troubles of its former accountant, among other modifications. In January, the SEC said it had received no substantive response from Imogo and said it would “take further steps as we deem appropriate.”